(Optional Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
On Saturdays in Ordinary Time when there is no obligatory memorial, an optional memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary is allowed [1]. Mass texts may be taken from the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, from a Votive Mass, or from the special collection of Masses for the Blessed Virgin Mary.
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| “The Calling of Matthew” by Marinus van Reymerswaele, 1536 |
Reading I: 1
Samuel 9:1-4, 17-19; 10:1
There was a stalwart man from
Benjamin named Kish
who was the son of Abiel, son
of Zeror,
son of Becorath, son of
Aphiah, a Benjaminite.
He had a son named Saul, who
was a handsome young man.
There was no other child of Israel
he stood head and shoulders
above the people.
Now the asses of Saul’s
father, Kish
and go out and hunt for the
asses.”
Accordingly they went through
the hill country of Ephraim,
and through the land of Shalishah
Not finding them there,
they continued through the land of Shaalim
They also went through the land of Benjamin
but they failed to find the
animals.
When Samuel caught sight of
Saul, the LORD assured him,
“This is the man of whom I
told you; he is to govern my people.”
Saul met Samuel in the
gateway and said,
“Please tell me where the
seer lives.”
Samuel answered Saul: “I am
the seer.
Go up ahead of me to the high
place and eat with me today.
In the morning, before
dismissing you,
I will tell you whatever you
wish.”
Then, from a flask he had
with him, Samuel poured oil on Saul’s head;
he also kissed him, saying:
“The LORD anoints you
commander over his heritage.
You are to govern the LORD’s
people Israel
and to save them from the
grasp of their enemies roundabout.
“This will be the sign for
you
that the LORD has anointed
you commander over his heritage.”
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Commentary on 1
Sm 9:1-4, 17-19; 10:1
We are introduced
in this passage to Saul. While on a
journey of three days to try to recover livestock that went missing from his
home, Saul encounters Samuel who is called Seer as opposed to Prophet at this
point in history. Samuel is told by God
that this is the person he is to appoint as King of Israel. He invites Saul to dine with him and the next
day anoints his head with oil as a sign that he is commander over the heritage
given to the Jewish people by God.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm
21:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
R. (2a) Lord, in your strength the king is glad.
O LORD, in your strength the
king is glad;
in your victory how greatly
he rejoices!
You have granted him his
heart’s desire;
you refused not the wish of
his lips.
R. Lord, in your strength
the king is glad.
For you welcomed him with
goodly blessings,
you placed on his head a
crown of pure gold.
He asked life of you: you
gave him
length of days forever and
ever.
R. Lord, in your strength
the king is glad.
Great is his glory in your
victory;
majesty and splendor you
conferred upon him.
For you made him a blessing
forever;
you gladdened him with the
joy of your face.
R. Lord, in your strength
the king is glad.
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Commentary on Ps
21:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
In this psalm of
praise, the faithful king is honored. This is the first of two parts in the
psalm. “In the first, addressed to God, it puts on record that the king’s
success comes from God (v. 1-6) […] The general tone of the psalm goes beyond
the way things were in the ancient kingdom of Israel and points to the ideal
king. For this reason both Judaism and the Church read it as a psalm about the
Messiah.”[5]
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Gospel: Mark
2:13-17
Jesus went out along the sea.
All the crowd came to him and
he taught them.
As he passed by, he saw Levi,
son of Alphaeus,
sitting at the customs post.
Jesus said to him, “Follow
me.”
And he got up and followed
Jesus.
While he was at table in his
house,
many tax collectors and
sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples;
for there were many who
followed him.
Some scribes who were
Pharisees saw that Jesus was eating with sinners
and tax collectors and said
to his disciples,
“Why does he eat with tax
collectors and sinners?”
Jesus heard this and said to
them,
“Those who are well do not
need a physician, but the sick do.
I did not come to call the
righteous but sinners.”
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Commentary on Mk
2:13-17
This passage from
St. Mark’s Gospel documents the call of Matthew, here named Levi. The Gospel of St.
Matthew renames Levi to Matthew so this tax collector, whose call is given
special notice, will be included with the elevated status of the call of the
first four disciples.
This story is the
setting for the next conflict/response interchange. In these verses the scribes
and Pharisees challenge Jesus about the people with whom he chooses to
associate because it threatens his status as “teacher”. The Lord uses the
famous analogy of a doctor not being needed by those who are well in response. "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not
come to call the righteous but sinners."
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Reflection:
Today we take notice of St.
Mark’s record of Jesus’ ironic reply to the scribes and Pharisees regarding his
mission. He tells them “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” The probable
reaction to this statement by those to whom he addressed it was –“Oh, he’s on a
mission to save those poor sinners” excluding themselves from the
population that needed calling since they were self-righteous.
We, of course, having been
exposed to the full ministry of Jesus, recognize that the Son of God came into
the world for all peoples and that no one is free from sin except he who came
to wipe away sin and the vessel from which he was delivered. Still we see these pious Jews thinking that
by consorting with those who had been marginalized, Jesus was contaminating
himself; being pulled down to their level – himself being made unfit for their
righteous company.
We think to ourselves; “How
blind these scribes and Pharisees must have been, not to have seen that they
themselves were sinful.” But we are
pulled up short. Are we not guilty of
the same condescension we see in those who looked down on Jesus’ actions in
calling Levi, a tax collector? Do we not
see the poor and those trapped in sin and feel (even secretly) that we are
better than they are, more righteous, more grace-filled, and closer to God?
The great gift of the Gospel
is that it holds up God’s mirror to our faces and tells us to look closely at
ourselves. It calls us to see if we are
truly conforming ourselves to the Lord or simply giving lip service to the one
who came to save all who had sinned – even those of us who believe we are
righteous and free from the worst ravages of sin. If we fall into this latter category it is
probably more difficult for us to find that intimate closeness with the Lord
than one who is fully aware of their great failings. For that tax collector or sinner, society
helps them by pointing out their sins and humiliating them and in their
humility they can find Christ. While
those who cling to their righteousness find humility elusive and Jesus who
dines with the sinners is difficult to find in the lofty palaces of
self-righteousness.
We learned long ago not to
pray for humility because, as Monsignor Robert Lundsford was fond of reminding us – those who pray for
humility should expect God to find a way to humiliate them. We do pray that we may always be reminded
that Christ came to call sinners and that we are all in that category. Whenever we start to think that we have
somehow avoided sin and have come closer to Jesus, may we look at the Blessed
Mother, the Apostles, and all the saints and see how far we have yet to go.
Pax
[2]
ALTRE
[3]
The picture is “The Calling of Matthew” by Marinus van Reymerswaele, 1536
[4]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and
is for private use only.
[5]
The Navarre Bible: “Psalms”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, pp. 89
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